Combination handle and clip for containers



Sept. 30, 1952 R. c. POTTS COMBINATION HANDLE AND CLIP FOR CONTAINERS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 20, 1946 Roy Potts INVENTOR.

Sept. 30, c -rs COMBINATION HANDLE AND CLIP FOR CONTAINERS Filed Dec. 20, 1946 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 6 64 Fig. 7 Fig. 3

Fig.1 Fig.14

90 Fig. 16

IN V EN TOR.

Sept. 30, R c -rs 2,612,309

COMBINATION HANDLE AND CLIP FOR CONTAINERS Filed Dec. 20, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Roy 0. Potts gnaw/Mm Patented Sept. 30, 1952 g 7-UNITED "STATES, PATENT COMBINATION HANDLE AND-CLIP -FOR CONTAINERS Roy 0. Potts, Takoma.Park, Md.

Application December 20, 1946,:Serial No. 717;570 6 Claims. (01. 229-152.)

J ,1 Thisinvention. relates; to containers, particularly to .fibreboard containers: of the type adapted for shipment of suchcommodities, as eg s, fruits andvegetables. and has for its principal object the provision of means for securing the parts of such containers togetherv in the desired relationship, butwhich means are readily removable to permit foldingof the container to .a flat condition for empty shipment.

' A further obiectof the invention is to provide fastening means of the type indicated which may bemtilized without the useof. any tools whatever, either in applying or removingthe fasteners, and which are moreover adapted to, perform certain other functionssuch as the provision of eonvenienthandles von the outer walls of the containers, without any of the usual complications required in multiple .use devices of this general kind.

Astill further.;.0,bject of the invention is to devise. fastening means .01 the type described which; are very simply formed of low-cost material, and which may therefore be supplied at anabsolute minimum of cost. An ancillaryobject of theinvention is to provide fasteners whose use does not complicate the container structure as such; more particularl the fasteners ofmy invention require only simple slots in certain of the panel members of the containers, which slots can readily be incorporated during themanufacture of the box, without expensive die-cutting operations; for example, the slots required may readily be formedduring the operation of the conventional rotaryfibreboard cutting and slotting machines.

4 The use. of fasteners of the type herein described and claimed is more fully illustrated in connection with certain improved forms of containers for in the subject matter of my ap pllcation Serial No. 717,569, now abandoned, filed concurrently herewith; the description of the present case, therefor, is limited almost entirely to the structure of the clips or fasteners themselves, and reference is madeto theabovee mentioned application for the details of the use of such fasteners in connection with particular forms ofcontainers. My invention will bestbe understood by reference to the following descriptionof certain preferred embodiments thereof, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is aperspective view of a, portion of aJ-two-ply end wall of a fibreboard container illustrating the use of one vform of'fastener, "Fig; 2 is a plan view of the same fastener,

: Fig. 3 is aside view thereof. Fig.- 4 is a plan view of a seco-nctform ofiastener.

Fig, 5 is aside viewthereof,

Fig, 6 is a plan view of amodified form :.aof fastener.

Fig. 7 is a side view thereof,,

Fig. Se is aside viewof the form shown in Figs. 6 and 7, but further-modifiedior use as a handle, I Fig. 91s a plan viewlof astill furthermodification of a fastener, Fig. lois a side viewthereof,

liig. 11 is a side view of'a furthersslight modiiication of-the formof Figs."9.-and 10,, a

12 :is a plan-view of a further form smite invention, .l

Fig.- 13'is a sideview thereof, Fig. 14 is a view similar tor-Fig. v.13..but.olive fastener additionallymudlfied;.;., 1

Fig. 15 is. a. plan view of; another, formaof fastener,

f Fig. 16 isa side view thereof. andv Figs. 17 to 19 are perspective views of further modifications.

Referring now. to. Fig. 1 of thedrawings, there is Q shown a broken away portion of v:onetwo-ply end of a fibreboard container of vthe type more fully, described in my concurrent application mentioned above. The two, plies are designated I0 and I2, and each hasan elongated slot there;- in, designated=broadly 115314. In order to secure the two panels together against movement either away fromjone another or in a slidingijashion, a fastener l6 is'provided, .and preferably formed ofa single piece of such material as stiff wire. .As shown in Figsnl to 3, fastener.lfijcomprisesa connecting leg I8 and two depending legs. 20 and 2 2,;these parts being substantially coplanar. and defining a U-shaped or stirrup-shaped portion adapted to engage the outer surfaceof panel. 10 when inserted through slot l4. Each of eg-$120 and22 turns in a direction perpendicular tothe plane of. the stirrup portion to provide slot-penee trating portions 24,and,26,.and then each'turns outwardly to form a loop.',(28 and 30 respectively),

the, loops being coplanar and approximately parallel to the plane .of the stirrup portion; As

shown best in Fig. 3, the, normal or rest plane of the loops 28 and 30 is slightly inclined .to the plane of the stirrup, to provide a tension grip I 2 when the. clip or If desired to permit ready 're-u'se of thec'on' tainer and facilitate insertioniandiremova'lfof the" fastener, such strip may beadhesi'vely se;

of fastener cured only in the area designated 34, being norpanel constitutes the outer panel of a container, then the leg l8 constitutes a convenient handle for the container, a duplicate fastener at the other end of the container providing a con-" venient means for handling the filled case. other words, mere insertion of the fasteners as a matter of container assembly may simultaneously provide outside handle members. The springy nature of the wire of which the fasteners are,

preferably fabricated enables the leg portion l8 to be grasped and pulled somewhat away from the outer surface of the container for a firm finger grip,-but, as described hereinafter, it is also feasible to provide a permanent outwardly-deflected location of leg l8 where the handle feature is particularly to be emphasized, without in any way lessening the-value of the member as a fastener. The-fastener l6 described above is constituted by portions of substantial area or projected area wardly as best shown in Fig. 7 at 60, and thence the two legs turn toward one another as at 62 and 64 of Fig. 6 to form closed loops lying within the profile of the stirrup portion. As best shown in the modified form of Fig. 8, each of the legs 56 a and 58 may be bent approximately midway of its length so that the central leg 54 willbe somewhat spaced from the outer wall of a carton to facilitate gripping by the fingers where the device is to be used as a handle.

The modification shown in Figs. 9 to 11 is very similar to that shown in Figs. 6 to 8 except that the portions 62' and 64 corresponding to portions B2 and 64 of Fig. 6, are turned outwardly rather which lie respectively in slightly spaced planes approximately parallelto one another, although before use, asmentioned, such planes may be slightly inclinedto one another in the interest of a firm grip. Connecting these portions are short members adapted to pass through the elements toi besecured. together: Thus, the contact between the gripping portions (e.- g.,' the portion made up of legs i8, 20 and 22 and the portion made up of loops 28 and 361) and the surfaces to V be secured is distributed over a relatively extensive area of such surfaces, which eliminates all danger of tearing or distorting the. material of the panels, and increases the effectiveness of the -fastening action. Further, the fastener is formed "tainer or to the'contents of the case.

-The principles of the invention as outlined above may, of course, befsatisfied by designs which are specifically different. Certain of these modifications-are described below, but it is to be understood that the description of specific forms herein is not to be construed to exclude other equivalent forms which come within the scope of such principles as defined in theclaims appended heretop than toward one another, so that the loops lie outside the profile of the stirrup portion formed by the legs 54, 56' and 58. In this embodiment, therefore. the distance between the terminal loops is somewhat greater than the form in Fig. 6 providing a better purchase upon the interior panel of a carton, but requiring a slightly greater area of contact on the inside of such carton.

In the forms shown in Figs. 12 to 14, the handle-forming stirrup comprises a central leg 10, depending legs 12 and 14. which turn rear-' wardly to pass through the carton slots as at 16 of Fig. 13,- thence' upwardly approximately parallel to the portions 12 and M, and then 'reversely downward as at l8- and 8i) of Fig. l2. The ends of the piece arethen turned toward one another as at 82, 84, terminating closely adjacent one another as best shown in Fig. 12. It will be-seen that ill-this form'of the invention there "are "in effect twostirr'up portions Ht-14 and 18 -80, and that these two portions lie in planes slightly inclined to one another for contact with the carton wall forming panels. As indicated in Fig. 14, the "portions 12 and 14 may be bentbetween their'ends to form the outstanding handle grip mentioned-above.

The form of Fi'gs.'15 and 16 is closely similar to that just described,the outer stirrup comprising legs 86, 88 and 90. "In this modification, however, the side legs '18 and 80 of the second stirrup-portion lie within the profile formed byfinem 'bers B6, 88 and 90.' v

or perforated as at iUB, and through this-slot is passed the stirrup-shaped handleportionofthe handle, comprising a horizontal portion-I08 and Figs. 4 and 5- show a former the invention in s which the stirrup is formed by three legs 40, 42

and '44, the latter two turning rearwardly as at A G'KFig. 5), thence upwardly as'at 48 and thence toward one another as at. 50 and, 52, terminating .closelyi' adjacent one another.

In this embodimerit, the fastener comprises in effect two U- shaped or stirrup-shaped portions in approximately parallel planes, the legs of each being joined by the"panel-penetratingf portions 46'.

Here again, the clamping areas are extensively distributed over the faces of the container ,material,jand"the fastener has all the features described above in connection with Figs. 1 to 3.

.the embodiment shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the

' The inherent resilience of the springy wire.;from

fastener comprises of central leg 54 and depending. legs 56 and 58 forming therewith a stirdepending leg portions H0 and H2. Leg 12 is bent rearwardly as at H 4 to pass through'the slot 106, thence upwardly as at HB and thence reversely downward as" at 8 and thenagain upwardly as at [20. The parts H6, H8 and lie in a common plane; and the length of portion 114 'is so chosen that parts us to lzuclosew engage the 'oppositesurface of the wall member. The portion I20 terminates in a forwardlyhdisposed loop I22 adapted to pass into or through the slot I05. Hence, the fasteneror .handlefleg engages the material defining the top edge of'slot H16 at a plurality, of spaced points, increasing the resistance "to tearing out [of such material.

which the handle isconstructed enables thedevice to be readily inserted intotheslot, yet provides for a firm grip upon the opposite surfaces of the wall. Furthermorethe dual engagement at each side normally restricts removal offthe e eem ither u wa d-pu rd-firesthe fastener may be slid out of engagement just as are the simpler forms earlier described here- Inasmuch as the parts associated with leg IIO are bent into a mirror image of the parts associated with leg I I2, it is deemed unnecessary to describe these similar parts in detail.

Fig. 18 shows a modification of the fastener I00, generally designated in that figure by numeral I30. The depending legs I32 and I34 are of the sameshape as described in connection with Fig. 17, except that the ultimate end of each leg is turned toward the end of the other, as indi- 6 modifications are possible, and I do not intend to restrict my invention to the particular forms herein described, except insofar as required by tener member adapted for use in handling and" the language of the claims.

I claim: f 1. A unitary preformed wire handle and fascarrying fiber board containers comprising: a transverse handle-grip segment, a downwardly extending leg at each end of the segment, the end portions of said legs lying in a single plane, a

work penetrating member at the end of each leg,

cated at I36 and I38, the terminals I40 and I42 lying just beneath the material defining the upper edge of slot I06, and in the plane of one or the other of the wall elements. The illustration of this form shows the handle applied to a single-ply wall member I44 having a usual form of closure flap I46 hingedly connected thereto at its upper edge. Thus, any usual form of fibreboard container may be converted into a handled container merely by providing appropriate slots in the end wall panels and top closur flaps. As so used, of course, the flaps may be turned either inwardly or outwardly with respect to the container to enable insertion of the handle member through the registering slots.

In order to provide increased strength and resistance to tearing of panel I44, particularly where the container material is corrguated board, rather than fiber-board, a re-inforcing strip I41 of cardboard, chipboard, fiberboard or the like may be inserted as indicated, with one edge in the fold connecting panel I44 and closure flap I46, the lower edge passing along the top edge of slot I06. Such a strip greatly increases the durability of the container wall, by increasing the area over which the stress applied by handle I30 is distributed, and hence increases the resistance to tearing of the material along the top edge of the slot.

A further modification is shown in Fig. 19, the depending legs I50 and I52 of the fastener passing rearwardly through the slot I06 as at I54, thence u wardly as at I56, diagonally downward as at I58 to a point below the level of slot I06, thence again upwardly as at I60, and terminating in a short forwardly bent portion I62 adapted to pass into or through slot I06. The latter portion provides the spaced point of contact with the top edge of the slot as described above. It will be understood that the opposite leg is formed in a similar (reversely symmetrical) fashion. As indicated at I64, the connecting portion between legs I50 and I52, which forms thefinger grip of the handle, may be spaced away from the wall panel, as by bending the legs I50 and I52 intermediate their ends, to facilitate positive engagement of the fingers with such handle portion. This construction may also be applied to the combined handle and fasteners of Figs 17 and 18, and is of particular value where the handle portion does not extend above the top edge of the container. In the latter circumstance, as indicated in Fig. 18, such a spaced-away handle portion would be unnecessary.

It will be seen that I have satisfied the objects of my invention by various forms of fastener having certain essential features in common, but it will be understood that other variations and said work penetrating members being formed at right angles to the plane of said legs and lying in a single plane, an upturned segment at the end of each said work penetrating member looped within a plane substantially parallel to the plane of said legs, the end portions of said looped, up-

turned segment being turned at right angles toward the plane of said legs and lying in a plane coincidental with the plane of said work penetrating members, said end portions of said looped, upturned segments being themselves looped.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1 in which the looped end portions of said looped, upturned segments lie in the plane of the 'work penetrating members.

3. A device as set forth in claim 1 in which all portions of the looped, upturned segments lie within a projection of the transverse handlegrip segment and its legs except a portion intermediate the upturned loops and the free ends thereof.

4. A device as set forth in claim 1 in which the extreme end'portions of each of said looped upturned segments lie in a plane coincidental with the plane of the work penetrating members, said .end portions being in abutting, linear alignment with each other.

5. In combination, a container having a wall perforated by an elongated slot and a unitary preformed wire handle and fastener member of the type set forth in claim 1 and having the handle-srip segment and its legs on the outside of the wall, the upturned loop segments on the inside of the wall and the work penetrating members passing through said slot.

6. In combination, a container having a wall perforated by an elongated slot and a unitary, preformed wire handle and fastener member of the type set forth in claim 4 and having the handle-grip segment and its legs on the outside of the wall, the upturned loop segments on the inside of the wall, the work penetrating members passing through said slot and the extreme end portions of the upturned loop segments lying within'and bearing on the'walls of said slot. ROY C. POTTS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the fileofthis patent:

UNITED I STATES PATENTS Olsen .1 Nov. 19, 1940 

